The reason why rockets lose to bad teams and win against good teams

good post. but im also starting to think that maybe the good teams our playing down to the Rockets level of competetion.

 

Fantastic post, trugoy. I think this might be the most accurate analysis I have read so far. What would you suggest to do?

 

Good post, though fairly hopeless . I'd hate to think that Steve is learning the wrong lesson again... and again... and again.

He does seem to be learning a bit this year. So maybe it's not all that bad. Yet what you say makes considerable sense in light of how the Rockets play...

 

There was some truth to this earlier in the season but right now Mobley for the most part is playing within the system and the reason the Rockets lost was not because Mobley was gambling and ISO'ing it was because he sucks right now, and the team sucked last night, they shot 30 percent from the field, 20 percent from the 3 point line and missed 14 free throws. It's like playing a football game and dropping 20 passes or turning the ball over 5 times. The Rockets cannot win playing that way but I thought they executed well enough in terms of trying to get inside out it's just that their poor shooting performance dug them a whole too deep to get out of.

 

There is no Spirit, no Leadership, no Plays, no helping out your fellow players , no picks, no defence. Sounds like a lack of good basic Coaching to me! The players are not on the same page.Yao Ming is allowed to show his stuff, briefly,then its time to move over and watch the Steve Franchise Show. All this dosent make the Fan feel like he is supporting a team effort by Players and Coaches.

 

This is a great post...

Although, probably too intellectual for most...

It is better to take risks when your say, 18 - 33, than say 28 - 23...err, 27 -24...

 

Excellent post. I made an analogy in a post a few weeks back comapring the Rocket's reliance on the Francis/Mobley individualism with a water anchor; stabalizes you when things are really bad, holds you back when you want to move forward...

The inherent problem with perimeter individualism dominating a team's fortune is that, unlike a team dominated by an inside player, it can and often does only need to involve one player's effort, which can be negated during the regular season by said player having a less than stellar night, and moreoever during the playoffs by having an opposing coach design his defense with that player(s) in mind.

An inside player who dominates a team is a bit different, as he A) needs teamwork of a sort to get involved at all, and B) can act as more of a hub around which an offense can revolve than a less predicatable perimeter player. Basketball works best inside-out, and the beginnings of that are present with an inside dominator, whereas an outside dominator need never involve anyone else, other than maybe the occassional pick.

Add to that the fact that any dominant player who decides to put the team's fortune on his back thereby lowers the team's potential avenues for success...himself, and possibly his team's recovery of his faliure the odd time. It's ok to be The Man if A) The Man involves others, B) The Man succeeds much more often than he fails, especially in key moments, or C) The Man has no other options whose success is likely. I would say that , at this point, Steve does not qualify in any of those areas, let alone Cuttino.

In this way, when Steve has a take-over game as vs. the Jazz, and succeeds, I often see as much danger in that 'success' as I do merit. When you read that 'Steve didn't lead his team like John Stockton, but just ran over Stockton all by himself', or something like that, I see red flags waving. This is particularly true of a point guard who can, if he chooses, take over the offense without anyone else ever having any say in the matter. This really needs to be rectified, or the current up-down pattern will not correct itself, but become more and more ingrained.

 

the mobley comparison to ceballos seems a little gratuitous in deference to mobley; ceballos is/was a garbageman who always seemed to be in the right place to get the putback. IMO he would be a much better fit at the 2 or coming off the bench with this approach, as the low BBall-IQ rocks do not move enough without the ball and rely too heavily on low percentage shots, and that's even when it's going well.
Shock therapy is what this team needs. Shocks come in the form of trades, benchings, etc. but most importantly role changes. Steve Francis does NOT have a point guard's mentality. Let me say that again for clarity's sake- the instinct is not there. Mobley does not have the proper mettle for starting at the two; it has been said and said ad nauseum that he is better as a more talented Vinny Johnson-type, first off the bench to give the offense a line shift change.
And is this group just too r****ded to process what every big man with a record of success in the league has said? "You've got 7-6 worth of offensive weaponry to run the offense through- use it!"

Why can't EG be told,
"from now on your name is Robert Horry; your job is the entry pass, weak side D, leech-like coverage on the opponent's frontcourt wing player, and shoot only when both you and the shot are there."

To Steve Francis; " You are a phenomenal athletic weapon. If only you had to worry about taking the shots the offense gives you, and not about running the offense yourself, everyone would marvel at your ability to drive, shoot AND pass, and not expect the latter as your primary role."

To Mobley; "You can be popcorn-machine exciting but you're no slow-cooker. Either you assume 'first off' duties like a man, or you take your high-wire act to a team like the Lakers who already have a solid game philosophy (which, BTW, would make them that much scarier) in return for a role player like Fox. (Cap geeks- what's his contract 10-20?)

To Yao; "You will get the touches. You are the offensive fulcrum. You are the smartest player on the floor (including the missing pure point guard) and we trust you to put this team on your back and make it run like a Mercedes. This team is nowhere without you."

Why does the hated Jazz continue to win, when you know what's coming? Because they know what's coming. With Olajuwon's teams, you knew what was coming as an opponent; but damned if you could do anything about him. I can't even call this current team a box of chocolates because their lack of a set philosophy dooms them to the kind of season they're having, and is viscerally predictable, much like my checking the scores this morning without having kept tabs on last night's game, and knowing they laid an egg before seeing the box score.

To summarize: Francis to the 2, Mobley out of the starting mix, EG as a half-court point forward, and Yao calling for, and getting the ball, every time down. Talent can get you nowhere; it's a lesson George Karl learned painfully last year. Coach T seems blind to it. He needs to shape this team.

 

I think it's getting to the point where you have to think that the Rockets just aren't good enough. Maybe they're living in a dreamland thinking they're a Playoffs team, but they're not. They have too many losers on the team, too many selfish players (lowest assist per game for a team), too many players that can't shoot (low scoring team). The only way to improve is not letting them develope, it's MAKING A TRADE bringing better players in and replace some of these cancers. Bringing players that provide leadership and chemistry to the team. This team has no chemistry between their players. These are the players that I see have no chemistry on the court: Mobley, Griffin, Posey. They show lack of emotion and encouragement during the game and that's sign of bad chemistry.

 

Press row view

The Rockets are so desperate to join "another level" that they spend half their season measuring and labeling themselves. They miss the point: Being at the other level is not a matter of simply bringing a superior team to the arena. That works in high school. In the NBA, it is about showing the same intensity and focus and effort to games against the LA Clippers as the LA Lakers. Status must be earned, not awarded.

Inside the numbers

The only time the Rockets have shot worse this season than they did Friday, their 29.5 percent shooting was the worst in franchise history. ... The Rockets are 0-5 when their opponent makes at least half its shots. The Heat made 51.5 percent. ... Steve Francis' 18 free throws were his high this season. He made 14. ... No Rockets player made more than half his shots. ... The Rockets' bench made five of 20 shots and scored 15 points. ... The Rockets' eight turnovers were their low this season.

Did you know?

The Nuggets are the only last-place team that has not beaten the Rockets.

-- JONATHAN FEIGEN (Houston Chronicle)

 

When the Rocekts turn the corner, the heart of this team will be Francis, Yao and Griffin. However, two of the three are extremely young and all three are still learning. Like TheFreak points out, this team is right about where it should be. They are playing well considering how much this squad relies on the extremely young Yao Ming and Eddie Griffin. This is the reality and we need to have realistic expectations to match it.

 

Guys -

I have to say that from beginning to end, this if BY FAR the single best thread I have ever read on the board.

Many of these posts are well thought out, interesting and in many cases, enlightening.

I know that I have been on a tear lately about firing Rudy, and to be honest, all of the other debates against my position have done nothing but put fuel on the fire. But this thread actually has me re-evaluating my position on Rudy

Nicely done!

I look forward to reading more of your posts, especially from trugoy, MacBeth, payaso and JeffB! Keep up the good work!!

 

What the hell, I'll throw another log on the fire. Right now, Mobley seems to be doing worse at individual stats (shooting) than at helping the team win (defense, assists, etc). So if we were to trade him, we'd probably get less than he's worth to us.

Francis, on the other hand, seems to be doing much better at individual stats than at helping the team win. If he's doomed to be a rich man's Jwill, how good a Bibby could we get for him right now?

 

Really a good post, Trugoy; and a good thread over-all. T, I especially like the following insights you noted:

 

If we win against bad teams and lose against good teams, I would agree that our talent is not good enough. But we are the opposite so I don't think we are not good enough. Letting our young talented players develop is the best way to build a championship team. Making panic trades after every losing streak will not get you anywhere.

 

It never occurred to me that Francis is the rich man's Jason Williams. Now that you mention it, it makes a lot of sense.

I remember watching the Kings a couple of years ago before they made the Williams-Bibby trade. You guys make fun of Rudy's "deer" look. You should look at Rick Adelman's face every time the White Chocolate did something stupid.

Williams would bring the ball up court and shot a 3 without making a pass, and it hit. Then the annoucer would predict, "He's gonna jack up another one the next time up." Sure enough, he jacked up another one the next possession, but it missed this time. Adelman used to say, "How do you control a guy who goes 100 mph for a layup?" They didn't know what to do with this guy who were a very talented ball handler, a good passer (whenever he decided to make the right passes), and could hit some big shots, yet didn't play defense, made boneheaded play after boneheaded play playing out of control.

You see? The Kings were a pretty good team then. They won a lot of games in the regular season. They just got killed in the playoffs. You think nobody told Williams to do the right thing? You think he didn't know what it takes to win ball games? But why did he not change?

I am beginning to suspect that great talent can be a curse, that being able to succeed with sheer talent can be so intoxicating--yes, addicting--that it's so hard to get sober from it. Consider the drug addict. You think nobody told him the harm of drug? You think he doesn't know? He may stay clean for a short period. But the thought of the high feeling is too great a temptation for him to overcome with reason.

Some time ago I started a thread "Can heroism be a bad thing?" I said every time I saw Francis succeed in heroic acts (hitting buzzer beating shots, winning games all by himself) I was worried. I said I wished he failed in those acts.

Success with sheer talent could be addictive. That might be Francis's problem. That might be why he would play a couple of games very controlled, and then reverted back to his individualism. That might be why no matter how many hero talks (Jordan, Lucas, Big O, etc.) cannot change his fundamental approach to the game. That might be why he talks as if he "gets it" but doesn't always "brings it" to the game.

Some might think I am a Steve hater. But I don't hate him any more than I hate my own son for not "getting it" in many facets of life. He is still young. There's still hope. But it's not as simple as "fire Rudy" or "listen to the Big O." It might take some kind of shock therapy, as trugoy said, to get him out of his "addiction."

 

The reason the Rockets lose to bad teams and beat good teams is that they're not good enough to beat both. If they beat the good teams AND the bad teams, they'd be at the top of the league. They're not good enough to do that. Maybe it would make people feel better if they started to lose more against the good teams and beat a few more of the bad teams?

Is that supposed to be good for his development? Why would you acquire one of the top players in the draft, then turn around and tell him in his SECOND YEAR, when he's only 20 years old, that all he's ever going to do is throw entry passes into the post? When Robert Horry entered the league, Hakeem was already one of the best players in the NBA. Yao Ming plays 28 minutes a game and can't even get post position half the time.

I don't think it's as easy as you think to ask a guy you just signed to a max contract, who has started the last two all-star games, and whom you've declared as your 'franchise', to take a backseat role. To top it off he's only in his fourth season. Again, you're asking him to take a backseat to a rookie who can only play 28 minutes a game and can't get post position half the time. If only it were as easy as you describe.

Yeah, RICK FOX is the answer to our problems, right? Geez. I'm starting to wonder if people would even complain about Mobley if Vinnie Johnson had never existed. Cuttino, why can't you be more like Vinnie Johnson? Man.

I would tell him, "when you can consistently get post position, and when you can play more than 55 percent of a game, you're going to be dangerous". I don't wanna ride a Mercedes with that kind of gas mileage yet, do you?

Olajuwon was better than anything the Rockets have now. That's why he couldn't be stopped. The Jazz win because they're led by veterans. Do you think the Rockets' record would look drastically different if you were to switch out Francis for Stockton? How many more wins would the Rockets have right now with Malone at the PF and Cato at Center? Bottom line is that the Rockets aren't any better than the Jazz, and shouldn't be.

I agree with the talent part in that it doesn't matter how good each player on your team is, it matters how good your BEST players are. Right now the Rockets' best players aren't as good as the teams in front of them.